The Earthship, a radical example of “biotecture,” seeks to build homes into the Earth, not just on it– using sustainable practices, recycled materials (like cans, bottles, and tires) plus solar and wind for power. Volunteers raise the impressive structures from decidedly unimpressive looking materials. The result is eco-living below, inside, and above ground (you can rent one or get involved in building one through the official webpage).
Underground living
We explored 16,000+ square foot of underground weirdness this Tuesday with a tour of an ex-Avon exec’s Las Vegas bomb shelter. This got us thinking about underground construction in general, not so strange in these days of innovative construction and the realization that surface space is only part of the”land you could use to build living space. The Earthship, above, is one end o the spectrum. The other examples below fall somewhere along that spectrum, from the middle all the way through to the extreme opposite end. What they all have in common though is unique living space underground.
Underground leisure
The polar opposite of the Earth Ship is 1 Buggy Whip Drive in Rolling Hills, CA.
A stunning example of conspicuous consumption, it has not only sprawled over the Earth, but under it. The Moroccan-style baths are all subterranean, as is the tennis court which per the listing is to US and French Open standards. It can be converted into an underground ballroom for 350 guests. We’ve only pictured the below-ground features here, in light of the article’s focus. Tour the whole $53M home at Estately.
This home in Pennsylvania, offered at $16.495M offers a shooting range (soundproofed and everything) underground.
Fun with target practice in your own basement! Photo via Estately
Re-purposed Missile Silos
Creepy? Cool? Abandoned missile silos make, to put it mildly, interesting single-family homes, like this one featured on Realtor.com in 2011.
“The ‘Silo Home,’ a former nuclear missile silo reconstituted as a private mountain retreat [in] Saranac, New York: Set on more than 19 forested acres within Adirondack State Park, the Silo Home is the architectural brainchild of two cousins who set about converting the abandoned 1950’s nuclear launch pad, previously built to house an Atlas-F intercontinental ballistic missile, in 1991. The duo spent the better part of 20 years creating an unparalleled 3,900-square-foot subterranean luxury estate with Cold War flair.”
The price upon listing: $750K.
All the way down
Some people commit to basically total underground homes, though the best of them allow for coming outside onto porches that grant natural light and air. Here are a few such homes via Inhabitat.
What do you say, readers? With land so dear, should digging down and living below it be a necessary part of future construction?
Anna Marie Erwert writes from both the renter and new buyer perspective, having (finally) achieved both statuses. She focuses on national real estate trends, specializing in the San Francisco Bay Area and Pacific Northwest. Follow Anna on Twitter: @AnnaMarieErwert
